


A Dark Secret

by Jadewing47



Category: Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Child Abuse, Hurt Wally West, Multi, Protective Dick Grayson, Torture, Wally West Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-21
Updated: 2020-02-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:14:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 9,187
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22834639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jadewing47/pseuds/Jadewing47
Summary: Wally's father abuses him. Thank God for speedster healing, or Wally would be busted. For 11 years Wally has been hiding this, but what happens when Robin starts to catch on, as his healing is stopping? Wally has been acting strange, and Robin's going to get to the bottom of this. Can he and Barry help Wally?
Relationships: Barry Allen/Iris West, Dick Grayson/Wally West, Kon-El | Conner Kent/M'gann M'orzz
Comments: 2
Kudos: 92





	1. Chapter 1

A fist connected with Wally's face, a hard kick in the ribs. Then nothing. _Was it over?_ No. The man stomped on Wally's right wrist. Hard. So hard Wally could feel the bone snap. So hard, Wally could hear it crack.

Then he was gone. Wally's blurred vision could slightly make out the large figure of his father's retreating back. "Get out of my sight you filthy piece of shit!" Wally heard.

Using his left hand to balance himself, Wally crawled to the stairs, dragging himself up to the top and into his room.

His strength used up, Wally collapsed onto the floor unconscious.

When Wally awakened, it was midnight. He picked himself off from the floor, shutting his door quietly. He thanked whatever Gods were watching him for granting him the small relief of his father not finding him. Wally knew it would mean another beating if he did.

Wally then dragged himself into the bathroom, glad he had one connected to his room so he would not have to walk into the hallway. That would run the risk of him running into his father again. Wally peeled off his clothes and turned on the water to the shower. So many times he had tested this. But he could not decide if cold water felt better, or warm water felt better to his wounds. He settled with lukewarm, stepping in and letting the cool water run down his back. He could feel his wounds beginning to try and heal, along with the previous ones that were still trying. Shutting off the water, Wally stepped out of the shower, drying himself off and pulling on a pair of soft gray sweatpants and a soft baby blue shirt. The blood from the beating had washed off, But Wally still had his arm to take care of. He quietly thanked Batman for there being no briefing next morning,(and hopefully no mission at all) or should he say this morning? It was already 12:45 am.

Wally pulled the medical tape and gauze wrap from the first-aid kit. He wrapped his right arm in gauze and bandage, then taped it off tightly with the medical tape. The cast was flimsy but would work, and it would hide under his sleeve. With that, Wally ate some food pills from his emergency stash,(the beating to his ribs made it impossible to eat real food) knowing it would speed up his healing factor, and sank into his bed. He was asleep before his head hit the pillow.


	2. Chapter 2

The first thing Wally thought when his alarm blared off at 7:30 am on Monday morning,

_It's going to be a long day..._

His leg and face had stopped hurting, but it still hurt to breathe and Wally's arm screamed when moved. But he could handle it. He had too because he was nothing. Wally understood this, and sometimes found it difficult to act so cheerful around friends or Uncle Barry, but he had too, or they would find out and he would be kicked off the team. Although what scared Wally the most, was that Rob wouldn't want to be friends with him anymore. No, no, he couldn't have that. He needed to stay silent. They couldn't find out.

Wally got up, speed brushed his teeth, re-applied the "cast", and pulled on a pair of comfy jeans, a blue shirt, and a red sweatshirt. He may not feel nice and warm, but that didn't mean he couldn't try and dress comfy and warm. Wally tied his sneakers with obvious difficulty, and then slowly cracked open the door. No sign of his father. Sighing in relief, Wally hurried down the stairs, slipped a key in his pocket, then hurried out the door.

Wally made it to the Zeta Beam in 15 minutes, walking of course. He stepped in and materialized in the cave, the familiar feminine voice ringing out, "Recognized, Kid Flash, B03." He made his way to where the team sat, waiting for training. His stomach growled, causing Wally to remember he skipped breakfast. "Hungry Kid Stomach?" Artemis teased. "No," Wally answered. It was a half-truth. He was hungry, but he couldn't eat, he wasn't allowed to, not worthy enough, and his father had kicked him in the ribs enough to make sure of that. Robin grinned. "WOW! World record!" Wally forced himself to laugh with the team, even though it hurt like hell. The team noticed something was off with their speedster friend, but they kept quiet.

Wally was practically asleep in his chair he was so tired by the time Black Canary called training. The others hurried out the door, Robin remained to get Wally. " Wally? Walls. Come on, it's time to train." Robin whispered into the speedster's ear. "Wha?" Wally asked, groggily sitting up and facing Robin with a confused look. " Come ON!" Robin begged. "We're the last ones, which is totally not astreous!" Then he froze, giving Wally a hard stare. 'Hey, you ok?" He asked, giving Wally a concerned look. "Yeah, I just, um, didn't get much sleep last night," Wally muttered. Robin raised an eyebrow. "I'm fine ok!" Wally snapped, then walked off to the training room, leaving a bewildered and slightly suspicious Robin behind.

"Superboy and Mg'ann, Artemis and Aqualad, Robin and Kid Flash. Inwardly, Wally groaned. He just HAD to be paired with the mini ninja. Robin was already getting on to him, this would just make it worse. Besides, he hated lying to his team. But there was no way to make it stop. Superboy and Mg'ann were first, ending in Superboy winning. Now he was next. Sighing, he stepped onto the training platform and got into his fighting stance, arm and chest screaming all the way. All he had to do was make sure Robin didn't punch him in the chest or use his right arm. Easy, right?

Totally NOT.

Wally used his super-speed to dodge Robin's attacks, but within a minute Wally was finding it hard to breathe, and since he hadn't eaten anything in like, a week, his strength was hardly there. His father had gotten worse, taking to beating Wally more often and cutting him with sharp objects too. He hadn't allowed Wally to eat at home and when Wally did get a hold of some food, he puked it up again. Luckily his friends hadn't really questioned him, and it was easy to lie that he tripped on his own feet when trying to cover up visible bruises that he couldn't cover up with concealer. It happened, even to speedsters.

Wally had zoned out for a minute, trying to catch his breath, and Robin took advantage. He used that creepy ninja thing of his to sneak up on Wally, flipping over him and then punching him in the chest, knocking him over. "Time." Black Canary called. Black spots threatened Wally's vision, and it had taken all of Wally's strength not to cry out. Normally his body should have healed at least halfway by now, but the lack of food had stopped that. Wally took the offered hand Robin gave him. "Dude, are you really ok?" Robin asked, looking into Wally's eyes. "Yeah, fine," Wally answered.

"Go wash up. Wally, I need to talk-" Black Canary paused. The speedster was nowhere in sight.


	3. Chapter 3

Eyes wide in shock and confusion, Black Canary looked around the room.

"Wally?" She called.

Robin frowned, "I'll find him." He said. His voice implied that this wasn't a question or reassurance, it was a fact, and Robin did not want to be bothered.

As he walked through the long hallway of Mount Justice, Robin pondered what was wrong with his friend. He had been acting strange all morning. To come to think of it, he'd been acting weird all week. _Was it something I said? No, Wally would have told me by now._ Then what was wrong? Wally hadn't eaten this morning, Robin had joked about it, but really, he was worried about his friend. It wasn't like him not to eat. Maybe he should talk to Barry. No, Wally seamed very distant and nervous when it came to the scarlet speedster. Had they gotten into a fight? No, that wasn't like them.

Robin walked up to Wally's door and knocked quietly. He heard a faint, "Go away." from inside.

"Wally, let me in," Robin said. There was no answer.

"Wally." Still no answer.

"You leave me no choice." He muttered, breaking out his wrist computer, and quickly hacking into the door. It quietly slid open. Wally was sitting in a dark corner of his room, his back to Robin. Robin stepped in, curious, but also worried about his friend. Wally turned his tear-streaked face toward Robin.

"I said go away," he whispered.

"Walls! What's wrong?" Robin exclaimed, running over and placing a gentle hand on Wally's shoulder. Wally didn't answer. The two sat there quietly, Robin thinking Wally just didn't want to talk, Wally trying to think of a good excuse to cover up the fact he had been crying. Then he found one, a crappy one, but it would have to do.

**Robin's POV**

Wally suddenly burst into new tears burring his head into my arm. I hugged him, and he didn't let go.

"I'll never be the hero Flash is. I always mess up. I'm not worthy of-"

"Shut up." I hissed. His head jerked up, and I was sure I detected fear in his wide green eyes, but it quickly faded. I wasn't mad at him, just kind of shocked that he would think so low of himself. "No. You won't be Flash. Yes, you will mess up. But that's ok Walls. You're your own person. You're unique, and you have friends that care about you. Remember that, ok?" I asked Wally nodded. "Is that all that's bothering you?" I asked.

The thing is, I _knew_ he was hiding something. I _knew_ he wasn't telling the truth. I _knew_ he had made up the whole outburst. Hey, I'm the ward of the greatest detective. But if Wally wasn't going to tell me straight on, I wouldn't push him. I'd figure out what was wrong in my own way.

"Yeah." Wally murmured. Pushing himself onto his feet. I noticed how he wasn't using his right arm much. I noticed how he grimaced whenever he put wait on it. I noticed how he was trying to hide it from me. Wally must have caught me staring because he quickly said,

"I'm tired, I think I might go home. I didn't sleep well last night."

"Okay." I murmured and quietly exited his door. Artemis was there. She raised an eyebrow and muttered,

"He's lying."

I nodded. "His wrist is broken too." Artemis gasped, but before she could say anything, I stopped her.

"If Wally doesn't want to tell me what's going on, I'll just figure it out on my own."


	4. Chapter 4

"Son of a bitch!"

Wally gasped as his father punched him in the ribs. Rudy's eyes were dim, he was drunk. He grabbed a beer bottle, half empty. He smashed it on Wally's stomach. Pieces of broken glass littered the floor, and the disgusting liquid splashed all over Wally. Wally grimaced. Now he smelled like beer.

"You're a worthless piece of crappy shit, you hear? Worthless! You don't deserve to have people who care about you. You're a thing. You ain't my son! My son didn't chase Mary off. Do you hear? It's YOUR fault she's gone! Asshole! Your...fault!"

Rudy picked up with a shaking hand a long piece of sharp glass. Realizing what his dad was about to do Wally began to panic. He could run. He could run to the ice cream store 4 blocks away and be back in time to do a little dance before the make-shift knife could ever hit him. But he didn't, instead, he waited for the pain.

You see, after living with a man who beats you every day and called you terrible names, you start to think about yourself in those ways. Wally had gotten it inside his head, and that's why he didn't run. First of all, his dad was the one holding the glass, the one who had broken and bruised his rubs more than he could count. His own dad. There had to be something wrong with him.

Maybe there was?

Second of all, he couldn't leave his dad. He wouldn't know how to fend for himself, (his dad) and if Wally told Uncle Barry or Robin or the team or anyone, his dad would be arrested. He didn't want that. Why? Why wouldn't he want that? With the things he had been forced to do he should be drowning in anger towards the man. But all Wally found there was sadness and broken trust. All he had ever wanted was for someone to love him. For someone to hug him and for him to know he was safe in that person's arms.

There was definitely something wrong with him.

"No, dad don't!" He begged, but his father did not listen.

Instead, the blade came down into his stomach, cold. It cut into his chest and carved a line straight down to his abdomen. Wally screamed.

His dad finally dropped the knife, and kicked him, right where he had been cut. Wally swore the world tilted. He was survived worse. His leg had once shattered and he had been forced to drag himself 44 feet before Flash found him, but this somehow felt worse. Why? Because his dad was the one inflicting pain.

Through teary eyes Wally watched his father stumble off the couch and collapse. Wally was scared, he had never seen his father so drunk before. He had gone so far as to cut him. Wally was shaking in pain and from the struggle to keep his emotions in check. He couldn't cry, he wasn't allowed to, no matter how much he wanted to call Robin and sob into his arms. But he couldn't. So, Wally began the painful process of walking up to his room.

* * *

The next morning, Wally felt like hell. This time he had no visible bruises, so he had the excuse of being sick. Since he had taken a food pill, ok, ok, ok, a couple, his knife wound had faded into a scar, but Wally still felt the pain. His father had cut him. His father hadn't allowed him to eat last night, nor this morning. On the occasions he did get to eat, there was food in the refrigerator. Wally liked to think it was a way of his father saying sorry. Otherwise he had no money, and could not afford food unless he was bringing it home from the mountain. The food pills came from the mountain as well, specially made for speedsters when they were injured and couldn't eat real food. Although he had taken the food pill and the scar had healed, Wally still felt in really weak. He wondered briefly how long he could stay like this.

Grimacing, Wally stumbled off to the Zeta Tube, vision blurry and his head threatening to kill him.

* * *

Wally was a yellow blur crashing into the mountain. He fell face down on the floor after slamming into the wall.

"Quite the entrance Kid Idiot!" Artemis laughed. Wally groaned. The rest of the team laughed around with her. Until Wally failed to get up. By now the team had turned their attention to the T.V. Robin's eyes, however, did not leave his best friend.

For a few seconds, Wally lay on the floor. It was cold. He liked it. But he could feel Robin's eyes on him, so he pushed himself onto his feet.

"Sorry." Wally murmured, his eyes everywhere but his friend. The team had cranked the volume of the T.V up so they could not hear Robin and KF, convenient, because Robin expected answers, right now.

"Come here, now," Robin growled, stalking off to one of the private conference rooms B.C used for meetings outside of Superboy's hearing range.

Wally followed, slower, dreading every coming moment.


	5. Chapter 5

"Sit" I growled.

Wally peered suspiciously at the small plastic chair I had pointed to. Reluctantly, he sat down with a small wince.

"Care to tell me what's going on?" I asked.

"No." He deadpanned. I rolled my eyes. Ok, so he was going to make things difficult.

Ok...

"What about your wrist?" He suddenly looked uncomfortable.

"W-what about my wrist?" Wally stuttered, suddenly finding his sneakers very interesting, and not so secretly hid his right wrist deeper into the sleeve of his dark green sweatshirt.

"Wally," I said, softer this time.

" I know it's broken, and I know you didn't trip, and we haven't had a mission since forever. So what happened?"

"Nothing," Wally whispered.

I knew right then that he wasn't going to talk, and I knew whatever was going on was really bothering him.

Wally stood up. "I'm going home." He said. As Wally said the word "home" he had the slightest flinch and a flash of fear lit up in his eyes. Home. Something was going on at home. Why hadn't I seen it before?

Before he walked out the door, I said, "Wally, you know you can trust me. Right?"

"I know." He murmured.

Wally walked slowly home, dreading every step. He unlocked his door, walked in, and locked it back before he could turn around, someone hit him in the head.

Wally heard someone say, "Ha! My son will pay for what he did!",

Another voice chimed in, "Yeah! The little brat will pay!"

Then darkness.


	6. Chapter 6

"Where's Kid Clutz?" Artemis asked. The rest of the team, minus Wally and I, were taking a short leave of absence. Just a month, to enjoy themselves. I had volunteered to stay at the mountain, just in case anything happened while they were gone. I told the team that Wally had wanted to stay as well. Truthfully, I didn't know where my friend was. Flash was in Asia right now and was coming back in 3 days, so he wouldn't know. I had called Wally, texted Wally, but no response.

"He's sick, but he told me to tell you to have a good time." I lied through my teeth.

"Meh, probably for the best," Artemis replied. Anger bubbled in my gut. Was I the only one who cared?!

"Oh! I hope he feels better!" M'gann cried. Ok, at least one person cared.

"Will do," I replied.

"I hope you enjoy yourselves as well, Robin," Kaldur replied. "And...don't get into trouble." He added.

I grinned.

"Stay whelmed guys!" I called.

They smiled back at me. M'gann, Conner, and Kaldur were the first to leave. They were going to tour the world on their bikes. Artemis grinned at me, then stepped through the zeta beam as well. She was going with a friend to California.

A month!

A month free with only Wally and I! Perfect for getting to the bottom of what was up with my friend.

I raced off to the electronics room, sitting down in front of a large computer, one I had designed myself.

I quickly logged on, the computer was heavily encrypted, it needed my fingerprint and 2 passcodes. But for me it was easy. In 30 seconds, I had hacked the street cameras for Central City. I knew the general area where Wally lived, even though he had never taken me there.

I clicked the space bar, navigating through camera by camera.

After an hour I let out a frustrated sound. It was around 8pm.

"How many cameras does Central City need!?" I yelled in frustration.

Click, click, click, click,click,click,click,click, click... _wait._

I backspaced.

"Yes!" I yelled. _Finally._

There was a picture of Wally, 3:45 pm on Tuesday, three days ago, walking home. I reviewed the video feed. He walked home slowly, limping slightly.

_Wait, limping?_

He walked to the door, hesitating before fumbling in his pocket for his key. Finding it, he pushed it into the lock and turned it, opening the door. Wally stepped in, closing the door with a slam. I couldn't see what happened inside the house because it was night and the house was not illuminated. I frowned, then quickly made my decision. I changed into my civvies, sending a text to Bruce that I was visiting a friend and probably wouldn't be home tonight. Then, he zetad to Central.

It was time to pay his friend a visit and get to the bottom of this.


	7. Chapter 7

I trudged through the dark streets of Central City, my hands stuffed into the pockets of my black sports leggings. I had worn them with my blue hoodie because I had a feeling I was going to be over at Wally's house for a while, and might as well be comfy. I kept my head down, so no late-night passerby would notice me, not that there were many. I walked down to Wally's mailbox, taking a deep breath, I went to his door.

_Knock knock knock_

There was the sound of people yelling, a couple of things crashing, and then silence. I was about to raise my hand out of my pocket to knock on the door again, when there as the sound of feet walking to the door, and it was cautiously pulled open. A dark face covered by a hood greeted me, staring at me with a harsh scowl that quickly turned into a curious look. There was something familiar about that face, but I couldn't place it.

"Uh, I'm here to see-"

"Wallace?" The man cut me off. Yep, definitely something familiar about the voice.

"Uh, yeah...are you his dad?" I asked. No, I have never met Wally's dad.

The man laughed. "Nah, but I'm his dad's friend. Come in boy, I'll take you to Wallace."

I smiled and nodded, stepping in even though I did not trust the man. As soon as the door closed behind me, something hit me other back of the head. As my body crumpled to the ground, the last thing I heard was laughter.


	8. Chapter 8

I could feel the cold ground, uncomfortable, yet relaxing at the same time. I could tell I was laying on my back, and I did a quick response check, wiggling my toes, fingers, hands, arms, and legs. Satisfied that I had no injuries and was not restrained, I focused on my main question, where was I? Then it all came back. Someone had deliberately knocked me unconscious. But why? Was I at the right house? I'm sure I am, I triple checked before transporting from the zeta-tube. Maybe this was Wally's idea of a funny prank? No, Wally pranks, but not this far. Maybe they were Wally's neighbors? Well, if so I should warn Wally he has very evil neighbors...Wait... _Wally!_ He was the whole reason I came here anyway. The thought that my best friend, my brother, could be in danger made my blood run cold. I forced myself to open my suddenly very heavy eyelids and become face-to-face with...

Darkness. Searing darkness. I willed my eyes to adjust to the dark, which only took a couple of seconds because Batman had trained me to adjust to difficult conditions easily, and realized that the reason the room was so damn cold was that I was in a basement. A rather large one too. There was open space where I was laying, now sitting, and past that was rows and rows of shelves, lined with all sorts of things, candles, flashlights, medical kits, blankets, a pile of rocks, batteries, and more medical stuff. It looked like Wally's private lair. Maybe it was.

I looked around, seeing nothing rather dangerous, I walked around the room, feeling the walls for something, anything to get me out of here, wherever here was. There was no light switch, rather, no light switch that I could find, which was odd considering the fact that this was a basement, and dark, and someplace a regular human being would want a light switch for. But then again regular human beings don't go around knocking out random kids that show up at their doorstep and lock them in large basements. Also, I had no matches for the candles and found all battery boxes to be empty. Woo hoo, no light for me.

Finally, I found what I was looking for, a door. I tested the handle, it was a pull handle. I grabbed it and pulled it. The door didn't budge. I re-adjusted my hold on the door and pulled, still nothing. I re-adjusted my hold for a second time, this time throwing all my weight against it and yanking back. Nothing. Then I heard a small noise and a voice.

"I-it doesn't w-work Dick. I t-tried already. They l-l-locked us in from o-outside."


	9. Chapter 9

I knew that voice, and it didn't sound good.

"Wally!" I cried, racing over to the spot where I first heard the voice. I knelt down by his face, which I could dimly make out in the darkness. I grabbed his arm, hoping it would comfort him a little, he sounded terrible, and the fact that he was on the ground made me worry, but before I could ask if he was ok, he beat me to it.

"W-what are you doing here R-rob?" Before I could answer him, the door was thrust open and two men waltzed in. The first was of them was a medium build, with the same red hair as Wally, only duller with age. He has cold brown eyes and walked as if he were drunk, and by the way Wally pressed himself into me I guessed he was afraid of the man. The next one was of medium build too, but I didn't have to study him to know who he was.

"Lenard Snart.' I hissed. The man grinned and held up his cold gun, slipping his goggles onto his face.

"Seams like I made a deal with the brat over there's father. Says I can do whatever I want to his son. The boy you see right there, is suffering from almost a week's worth of torture, and 10 years more of other things that I'm sure he will share with you when he slowly dies." Snart said, obviously quite pleased with himself.

"Lay a hand on him-" I began my threat, but Snart cut me off.

"Oh don't worry kid, I'll do much more," Snart said, laughing.

He set the cold gun in its case, putting the case on the floor and slowly walking over to Wally and I. I shielded Wally's body with my own, wishing that I was Robin right now so I could defend, not be such a helpless snob like I was right now. Snart forcefully grabbed me and dragged me away from Wally. It was only 4 feet, but I still kicked and screamed all the way. Snart cuffed my wrists and ankles to a pole on the wall. I kicked and bit and struggled, but Snart was strong. Stronger than Dick Grayson could ever be. I eventually fell silent, knowing that it wasn't helping Wally in the slightest. They turned Wally toward me so I could see him.

"This, Dick Grayson, is called "killing two birds with one stone". I torture the ass-brat, I torture you."

He gestured to the man who looked like Wally.

"Go ahead."Snart grinned.

As the man took a few steps closer, Wally whimpered in fear, he turned his head away from the man and instead looked at me, his green eyes large with fear. The man took out two knives.

"Thank for lending 'e these baby's." The man said, he talked like a drunk man. Leaning over Wally, he plunged the knife into his left leg. He grinned. Then took out the second knife, moved to Wally's side, and plunged it into the right side of his abdomen, he began to twist it around, spiking it and jabbing the knife. Wally, who was un-prepared for this, screamed bloody murder.

"Stop!" He wailed. "Dick! Dick make it stop! Dick! Stop please!" Wally threw his head back and screamed.

"Ok, enough," Snart said in his signature cold voice. The man stood up, leaving both knives in Wally's body, and stood next to Snart. I was on the verge of crying. He adjusted his cold gun settings. Turning to me he said,

"This setting will encase anything or anyone I shoot in ice, but not give then frostbite. Because of your friend's current condition, his speedster genes, and his inability to heal, this _will_ kill him." Snart explained, grinning.

Turning back to Wally he leveled the gun.

"No please don't!" I cried. But it was useless, as Snart froze Wally's entire lower body, from the midsection down.

Then, the two men left.


	10. Chapter 10

A couple second of useless struggling later, the cuffs, automatically slipped off. I scrambled to Wally's side, grabbing his hand once again.

"Hey, hey, it's ok. I'm here, you're ok, I'm not going to let them hurt you anymore, even if it exposes my identity." I murmured into Wally's ear. He moaned, turning his head to face me, his fingers tightening as best he could around mine.

"Hurts." He breathed.

"I know, I'm sorry. I'm going to get some things to get you free, to help you." I said, beginning to stand up. Wally's hand tightened even harder around mine.

"Don't leave me." He whispered.

"Hey, I'm only going to be gone for a second, I need to help you Wally, your already losing blood." I murmured. With that, I raced around to grab a medical kit and some boxes of matches that I found buried in the back of the basement. I guess I could light a candle, but I didn't have much, only 3 packs. It took all 3 packs of matches to melt the ice keeping Wally prisoner, the ice that was slowly killing him. After I was done with that, I gently pulled the knives out of Wally's leg and abdomen. Wally screamed, withering in pain on the floor.

"Sorry sorry, buddy!" I murmured. That was done, now I took gauze wrap and bandages and wrapped Wally's leg up, also wrapping up his abdomen. Now for the next order of business, getting Wally to a secure spot. Honestly, I'm pretty sure I can pick him up he's so thin. So I did, sliding my arms underneath his torso I gently lifted him up, supporting his leg in the least painful way possible. Wally didn't even make a sound. I think he might be unconscious. But when I placed him down in a sheltered spot away from the door, he whimpered, so I knew he was awake. I grabbed 6 blankets from the shelf and carried them to where Wally lay. they were grey and soft, one good thing. I laid out 4 to cushion Wally. I maneuvered him so his head was on my lap, cuddling him, trying in every way I could to make him feel better, to distract him from the pain. I draped the last 2 blankets over him, and he did a whimper/sigh, curling up a little and using my hand as a stuffed animal. My free hand stroked his hair softly.

"Wally?" I asked.

His eyes traveled to my face, although he did not answer, I think he was too exhausted.

"Who was the other man that...did this to you?" I asked gently. "Snart said you had been doing something for 10 years, what was it?"

"I-I-I'll t-tell you l-later." He murmured.

"Wally..."I pushed.

"F-fine." A single tear slipped down his face. "When I w-was f-f-five my m-mother left u-us. A-and my f-father abused me e-e-ever since."

His will power gone, Wally began to cry.


	11. Chapter 11

"Wally." I murmured, adjusting my position on the blankets so I could look Wally in the eye, but also keep his head on my lap. "

"Wally." I tried again.

"I'm sorry!" He yelped.

"Wally, it's ok, it's ok. Shhhhh. It's ok." I whispered, grabbing his hand and squeezing it gently.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I murmured.

"B-because I-thought you would b-be mad. A-and Uncle B-barry wouldn't let m-me be K-kid F-flash anymore, c-cause I was w-weak and d-dumb, a-and you w-wouldn't w-want to be my f-f-f-friend a-anymore."

"Wally, your not weak and you're not dumb. Barry loves you, he wants to help you. I love you, like a brother, too. Your definitely not weak Wally, in fact, your very strong, putting up with your father all those years, I admire you." I said. Because I did, I really did. And Wally's reasons for not telling me he was getting abused made my heart shatter into a thousand pieces.

He looked up at me, "Really?"

"Really." I murmured. He seemed to relax for a moment, but he quickly lurched forward, begging to cough up blood onto the floor. Wally's arms were shaking until they gave out altogether. I scrambled onto my knees and was able to catch the injured speedster before his face hit the floor. I laid his head back down onto the blankets and quickly checked for a pulse. It was slow, dangerously slow.

"Wally!" I hissed, shaking him as gently as I could.

"Wally!" I tried again,

"Wally!?" My voice was growing desperate, and I was shaking him harder now.

"S-stop s-shaking me -i-i-idiot. Hurts." He gasped. His eyes cracking open just the slightest bit.

My shoulders slumped and I sighed in relief.

"Don't scare me like that," I muttered, briefly checking his injuries. I touched the knife wound lightly, frowning at what I saw. Wally's whole body arched backward, he was screaming bloody murder over one touch. It was definitely infected. I gripped Wally's shoulders in reassurance as he began to couch up more blood.

"Your healing metabolism should be kicking in right now..." I muttered.

"No." He whispered after taking a few long breaths. "S-snart injected me w-with something. S-said it would stop m-my healing p-p-powers."

"I c-can't heal anymore R-rob."


	12. Chapter 12

"R-rob?" Came a weak voice below me.

"Yeah?" I answered, tilting my head to try to make out Wally's face in the darkness.

"P-please don't t-t-ell the team...o-or anyone e-else." Wally murmured. He had stopped shivering an hour ago, and his breath was coming in slow ragged gasps. _Signs of coming hypothermia._ I thought.

"Why not?" followed by, "What about the JL?" Wally sighed softy, he was fighting to stay awake.

"I-I just d-don't want a-anyone to know, ok? I-I mean, F-flash is o-ok. I-if he finds us. A-a-a-and Batman and knows everything...so..." I almost chuckled at that.

"Just them p-please." Wally asked, his voice becoming softer.

"Promise?"

"I promise Walls," I answered. Wally gave me a half-smile, squeezing my hand gently before his eyes closed and his head fell back onto my lap.

"Wally!" I yelled, jumping up.

"No no no no no no no no!" I muttered, spinning around to face him. I yanked off one of my gloves and bent down to feel his pulse. Still there.

Barely.

I shoved my fingers up by his nose, waiting...

A small puff of air.

Sighing in relief, I fell back against the wall. Turning my head to Wally I muttered,

"Imbecile." Then,

"Please be ok..."

Getting no answer, (I didn't expect one) I let my head rest.

I had to stay awake. I had to protect Wally. I had to stay alert. I _had_ to.

I didn't even remember closing my eyes, entering the world of dreams.


	13. Chapter 13

The fire was _everywhere._ It surrounded me on all sides, filling my lungs with its harsh smoke. But there was still a young girl and her mother trapped inside, and they needed help. Wally and I searched around, looking for them until Wally cried,

"Rob! Ahead! They're over there!" I turned to the direction where Wally was pointing, and sure enough, there was a woman and a small child, huddled together in a circle of falling debris. Wally and I both moved quickly, Wally scooped up the child and grabbed the woman's hand while I held up the large piece of flaming hot debris trapping them down.

_Thank god Alfred made my gloves heat resistant!_

Wally looked at me.

"Go!" I yelled. "I'm right behind you!" Wally raised an eyebrow because I couldn't literally do that, but he knew what I meant.

"Rob-" The building began to creak and sway. The child began to cry.

"GO!" I yelled. And he sped off in a blur of color.

I tried to follow him, I really did. But as I neared the door frame, aka a huge hole in the wall, that wall collapsed into flames. I was trapped, there was no way out but the windows and they were blocked by fire. Smoke filled my lungs, and I started to cough and gag, my throat burning. The ceiling began to collapse, and I knew I was trapped in here for good.

"I'm sorry (cough) W-wally." I murmured. The fire licked closer, the heat radiating from it was almost unbearable.

There was suddenly a gust of wind, causing me to choke even more. Hands gripped my shoulders, and suddenly I had the sensation of the floor leaving and just _wind._ Wally had carried me before but I was too disoriented from lack of air to understand what was going on.

Wally carried me out of the building using his superspeed. The second his feet hit the grass outside, the building collapsed in flames. I choked and gagged and wheezed, my lungs rejecting the air at first but then gradually letting it clear out the smoke in my system.

Wally held me bridal style, his green eyes filled with concern.

"Breathe buddy, it's ok. I've got you. You're safe now." I sighed softly, letting my head fall back on Wally's shoulder, trusting him to keep me safe.

Wally was the only person I trusted ever since my parents. I hadn't even allowed Bruce to hold me. Wally was the only one. Wally chuckled and we left in a blur of color.

* * *

I struggled against the bonds holding me tight against the metal table. It was dark, and the chains cut into my wrists, making them bleed.

"Is little Robbie going to tell me who Batman is? Or should I find out myself?" The figure cackled. It wasn't Joker, Harley, or Scarecrow. I honestly had no idea who this one was, but he sure was good. He was able to knock me out with some sort of gas and a taser.

"In your dreams." I spat. The figure grinned, his crooked teeth seaming to glow when he smiled. He had a mask covering the rest of his face, though his eyes glowed too.

"Fine then." The figure said. It reached over and slipped its cold fingers under part of the fabric of the mask. Seeing what he was about to do, I began to struggle more, blood spraying from my wrists whenever I moved them, the same with my ankles.

"I guess I'll find out on my own." It said darkly. But before the figure could pull off my mask, a blur of yellow and red slammed it into the wall.

"You met the WALL man!" Wally yelled. I rolled my eyes. Wally had caught the man off guard, otherwise, I would have been able to handle him. Wally quickly tied him up, then undid my bonds. Luckily my gloves and boots were black, so Wally couldn't see the blood.

"You ok Rob?" Wally asked, looking me over skeptically.

"Fine," I muttered, gritting my teeth as I stood but otherwise remained silent. I quickly fixed my mask. Wally knew who I was, but I wasn't sure about security cameras or people outside or anything.

"Come on, Batman can handle that guy," Wally said, gesturing to the unconscious figure in black. I nodded, then stepped forward. Pain from my ankle caught me completely off guard and I stumbled, hissing in pain as I doubled over, my hands snaking down to my ankles.

"Woah, easy. You are so not fine." Wally pointed out, grabbing my wrist to steady me. I yelped, snatching my wrist away from him. It hurt.

"Robin?" Wally pushed. He gently took my arm, pushing down the glove. I hissed softly. Wally cringed as he saw the skin, red and raw and bloody from the restraints.

In one swift movement, I was in his arms and he was carrying me out of the warehouse.

"Hey!" I yelped.

"S'ok Rob, your injured," Wally said. I huffed but relaxed in Wally's arms as he sped off.

* * *

That's two times he's saved me.


	14. Chapter 14

This day had been absolute hell. My throat burned, my nose was clogged up, my stomach was in constant agony, I was hot all over, and I could barely stay awake. I hadn't been this sick since I had the flu the first year I lived with Bruce. But no one could know. I didn't want my team or Batman to fuss over me or be worried, and I certainly didn't want anyone to think I was weak. So I had pushed through the day, luckily a day with no missions or training. I guess a good day for me to get sick. Today had been interesting though, Superman had arrived and talked to Connor, he had actually taken Connor to his home to spend the night. Connor seemed really happy, so that was good.

Connor was gone. Mg'ann had decided to spend her night with her uncle. Artemis had gone to Starling to patrol with Green Arrow, and Aqualad had gone to visit his king. Flash was gone, having to go to the watchtower to deal with a special mission, and Wally had chosen to stay in the mountain, mumbling some excuse about his father working late that night. Yesterday I had agreed to stay at the mountain to keep him company, and now, although Wally was my best friend, I was regretting that decision on account of the fact Wally would find out I was sick.

" 'm gonna call it a night, "I muttered.

"What? Dude, we were going to watch a movie or something." Wally exclaimed shooting me an incredulous look.

If I didn't leave soon I was going to pass out. I know I was.

" I'm just really tired." I murmured.

"Alright," Wally said. "Goodnight."

"Night," I called behind me. I neared the hallway that led to our bedrooms. Suddenly, blackness began to steal my vision, making me sway slightly, I stumbled but caught myself barely.

"Robin, you ok?" Wally asked. I groaned, finally giving in and crumpling into blackness.

(1hour later)

I moaned as I opened my eyes, the harsh light blinding me.

"Sorry." A voice murmured, and the lights dimmed almost completely.

"Wally?" I croaked.

"Here." the quiet voice of my friend murmured, and his hand gently lifted my head, tilting it slightly as a glass found it's way to my lips. I drank the water greedily. Until Wally pulled the cup away and lay my head back down on something soft.

"What happened?" I asked. Before Wally could answer, I began to cough violently, trembling as I did so. Wally rubbed my back soothingly until I stopped.

"You passed out." He answered.

"Oh."

"Why didn't you tell me you were sick? I could have helped you sooner." Wally asked.

"Wasn't important," I answered. Wally smacked me on the head.

"Now you're the idiot." He scoffed. I shook my head.

"I made you soup," Wally said, offering me a bowl of chicken noodle soup. Wait, scratch that, he offered me a bowl of two spoonfuls of soup. I raised my eyebrows.

"Hey! Chefs always taste test their food." Wally said. I rolled my eyes but ate the two bites of soup anyways. Afterward, I was exhausted. I swear to you I will sleep for two weeks.

"Sleep now, Dick." Wally murmured, taking the empty bowl and pushing me down on the pillows, tucking the blankets by my chin.

"What about-" What about nothing? I had nothing to worry about. So why do I think I do?

"Shhh. Sleep." Wally commanded. He dimmed the lights completely and even took off my mask. No one was here. It was ok.

He sat in a chair by my bed.

"You don't have to stay."

"You're not getting rid of me," Wally said smugly. With that, I fell into the most peaceful sleep I had in years.

That makes it three times. Three times Wally has saved me. Why couldn't I save him once?


	15. Chapter 15

_Click._

_Click._

_Turn, click._

_Click._

_Scratch,_

_Turn, scratch_

_scrape..._

I bolted upright, inwardly cursing myself at falling asleep.

I swear to God I heard a noise.

_Click,_

Someone was picking the lock. I hadn't eaten in days and hadn't really slept since three days before I had gotten trapped in here. The basement had no windows, so I lost track of when it was day and when it was night. I had no idea how much time had passed. So my brain did not register that perhaps the reason the person on the other end of the door was a good guy, which was why he or she was picking the lock.

The only thing I knew was that Wally had been getting tortured for a week before this, and I hated myself for that.

_Click, scrape, CLICK!_

Whoever was on the other side had successfully picked the lock. I frowned, getting up as quickly as I could, standing protectively over Wally's body, ready to protect him.

Because I had made a promise. I told Wally I would never let anyone hurt him, even if it cost me my identity.

I intend to keep that promise.

* * *

"Robin?" Came a grave voice.

"Br-Batman?" I asked. He had found us! We were going to get out! Wally was going to get rescued!

"It's me, you're going to be ok Robin," Bruce replied. I felt a stab of angered me at that part, but I forced it down. Wally was the one who they should be worried about. Not me. I was fine.

"No! Wally. He's dying!" I yelled. Bruce quickly walked over to the lump behind me, but a flash of red and a huge gust of wind beat him to it.

Barry leaned over Wally, scooping him up in his arms.

"Oh, God Wally!" He murmured, before flashing off in the direction of Central City's zeta tube.

I reached my hand out to where they had just been, where Wally had just been. Pain flaring up in my chest because he was gone. And I had no way of figuring out whether or not he was ok.

A hand found its way onto my shoulder, Bruce's hand. But I barely registered the touch. My world was fading in and out. My mind screaming at me to stay awake.

I dimly heard Bruce's voice call my name before my vision faded into blackness.


	16. Chapter 16

_Beep!_

_Beep!_

_Beep!_

_Beep!_

_Beep!_

_Open your eyes!_

My eyes flew open, my whole body tensing. I immediately regretted doing so, as a harsh white light blinded me. I quickly squeezed my eyes shut.

_Where was I?_

My memories then came flooding back, _Wally, getting trapped, Batman, I passed out..._

_Wait...Did I pass out?_

_STUPID STUPID STUPID! I mentally yelled, my anger towards myself enough to make Martian Manhunter collapse._

_What kind of friend was I? First, I can't save Wally from getting stabbed and frozen by his own fucking father. Second, I don't realize that my very best friend is getting abused, wait, scratch that, TORTURED! And lastly, I pass out like some amateur after only 7 days without food/water/sleep. I've survived weeks worth of torture from the JOKER..._

_I feel so powerless._

I can't do this anymore. I've got to be a better friend. I have to protect Wally. And that starts now.

I quickly sat up, ignoring the slight cramp in my muscles because I knew Wally was in more pain than I was. I ripped the IV from my hand, tossing it aside. Dinah came rushing over to me.

"Robin, don't do that, lay back." She said, trying to push me back down.

"No," I replied, startling myself even by the icy tone to my voice. Dinah was momentarily shocked, giving me the chance to swing my legs over the end of the hospital bed, jumping down.

"Robin, you need to rest." She said softly, grabbing my hand. I yanked my hand back.

"No. I'll rest when I know Wally's life isn't on the line," I argued.

"He's still in surgery." She said back.

"I don't care," I replied.

"Robin-" She began, but I cut her off.

"No! It's my fault Wally is-." My voice cracked. I sighed, continuing.

"I'm staying with him for until he gets better, however long that takes. No one can stop me."

"It's the least I can do," I whispered.

Dinah nodded.

"I'm here is you need me."

I nodded my thanks, before hurrying out the door, towards my best friend.


	17. Chapter 17

The blackness that had covered my brain like a thick blanket for what felt like an eternity, was slowly beginning to lift. Some people jump back to consciousness incredibly fast...I'd seen Robin do that before. He would lay, eyes closed, still and lifeless on a medical bed, until suddenly those incredibly blue eyes would snap open and he would be up and away like he had been awake the whole time.

I took my time. Part of me just didn't feel well, and I didn't want to wake up. Feeling was coming back to me and I felt sick and hurt all over. But the other part of be was terrified. I was terrified that I would wake up in that basement again, terrified that my Dad might be there, terrified that Robin might be hurt, and terrified that maybe Robin had decided to leave me. Because who would want a super-powered friend who fought evil day and night, but couldn't stand up to his own father?

As feeling returned to me, the pain and sicky feeling increased, until it was a loud throbbing all over me. I wanted to go back to sleep, to slip back into unconsciousness. I didn't want to wake up in that room. I was afraid to open my eyes.

But soon I became aware of a small warmth in my hand, one that hadn't been there before. I also became aware that whatever I was laying on was very soft. But...how? I didn't have anything soft in that cellar. Where was I?

For what felt like hours, but was actually a couple of minutes, I debated whether or not I should open my eyes. Finally, the curious side of me won, and my eyes slowly opened, taking their sweet time to actually focus on anything. When they did, I was awarded a harsh, blinding white light. It only helped to increase my headache. I groaned loudly, turning my head to the right, away from the lights only to focus on...

The sleeping form of my best friend. He was seated in a chair beside my bed that I had been sleeping on, his head laying on the bed beside my face, his hand in mine bangs messy, and empty coffee cups scattered around him. My groan must have woken him up, cause his eyes blinked open slowly and he lifted his head slightly.

"Wally?" He whispered relief and concern flooding his voice. Realizing that I was awake and not unconscious, his head snapped up, a smile crossing his features.

* * *

**Robin's POV**

I smiled in delight, my head snapping up.

"Wally!" I yelled, leaning over to hug him, but freezing at his reaction. Wally tensed up, moving a hand in front of his face and squeezing his eyes shut, turning his head away from me.

"No...please no..." He whispered in fear. Concern filled my gut. _Stupid, it's not like he's going to bounce back after something like this. Ever heard of PTSD dummy?_ I mentally scolded myself. I slowly and gently cupped his face, which was sweaty but cold at the same time. I began to stroke his cheek softly and already some of the tension was beginning to fade from his body.

"It's ok Wally. You're alright. It's me, Dick. You're safe now, I'm not going to hurt you. Nobody will remember my promise? I kept it. You're ok." I murmured to him. Wally's gaze traveled up to meet mine.

"Robin?" He asked, tears glistening in his beautiful green eyes.

"Yeah," I replied, smiling at him. He drew himself closer to me and began to sob. I held him close, rubbing his back and murmuring soft words of comfort to him. He clutched my shirt tightly as if I might fade away or dissolve into nothing.

"You...you ar-you don't h-hate me?" he asked.

"Never," I reassured him. He let out a small, shaky laugh. And that's when I realized that everything was going to be ok.

**The end**


	18. Chapter 18

Hello my lovely readers!

It's Jade here. 

I wrote this story a few years ago on fanfiction.net, and while I am reading through it to post it here, I'm cringing a bit at the writing. 

I have considered a few times attempting to rewrite this story, following the same plot but improving the writing style and adding more details, but because this is my most successful story, I have decided against it. 

HOWEVER,

If you liked A Dark Secret and wish there was more to this story, you're in luck! 

I am in the process of writing a sequel to this story called Secrets Have Aftermaths, where we will dive into the healing process, both physically and emotionally, of Wally's ordeal, and prod a little deeper into Wally and Robin's relationship. 

Since I am still writing Secrets Have Aftermaths, I can assure you the writing quality of this story will be much better, and hopefully more enjoyable for you. 

I am uploading Secrets Have Aftermaths chapter by chapter, so if you are interested please make sure to follow my story so you won't miss out on new chapters! 

If you like my stories, feel free to check out more by clicking any of the links below. I write about many things, including Young Justice, Avengers, iZombie, The Goldfinch, Star Wars, Arrow, Spiderman, Batman, The Flash, Sherlock, Star Wars Rebels, etc. 

Thanks so much for reading this, and I hope you liked it! 

Check out these links to see my other stories:

Fanfiction: <https://www.fanfiction.net/u/7475807/Jadewing47>

Wattpad: <https://www.wattpad.com/user/Jadewing47>

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Deviantart: <https://www.deviantart.com/jadewing47>

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Archive of Our Own: <https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jadewing47/works>


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